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  • Borch Hutchinson posted an update 3 months, 2 weeks ago

    INTRODUCTION Millions of women suffer from the consequences of endometriosis and uterine fibroids, with fibroids the cause for over 50% of hysterectomies in the USA, and direct costs for their treatment estimated at between US$4 and US$9 billion. Endometriosis commonly affects millions of women worldwide predominantly during reproductive age, with severe menstrual and non-menstrual pain and subfertility the main symptoms. Due to the ‘unhappy triad’ of endometriosis-lack of awareness, lack of clinically relevant biomarkers and the unspecific nature of symptoms-women wait on average for 8-12 years before the definitive endometriosis diagnosis is made. Treatment options for both conditions are not satisfactory at the moment, especially with a view to preserving fertility for the women and families affected. In the Fibroids and Endometriosis Oxford (FENOX) study, we combine the investigation of fibroids and endometriosis, and plan to collect high-quality tissue samples and medical data of participants over a time Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2020. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ.OBJECTIVE To assess the impact of a sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) reduction initiative on customer purchasing patterns, including volume sales of healthy and unhealthy packaged drinks and sales value of all packaged drinks, in a major Australian aquatic and recreation provider, YMCA Victoria. DESIGN Prospective SETTING 16 aquatic and recreation centres in Victoria, Australia. INTERVENTIONS The SSB-reduction initiative aimed to remove all SSBs (excluding sports drinks) and increase healthier drink availability over a 1-year period. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES Itemised monthly drink sales data were collected for 16 centres, over 4 years (2 years preimplementation, 1 year implementation and 1 year postimplementation). Drinks were classified as ‘green’ (best choice), ‘amber’ (choose carefully) or ‘red’ (limit). Interrupted time series analysis was conducted for each centre to determine the impact on volume sales of ‘red’ and ‘green’ drinks, and overall sales value. A novel meta-analysis approach was conducted to estimate the mean changes across centres. RESULTS Following implementation, volume sales of ‘red’ drinks reduced by 46.2% across centres (95% CI -53.2% to -39.2%), ‘green’ drink volume did not change (0.0%, 95% CI -13.3% to 13.2%) and total drink sales value decreased by 24.3% (95% CI -32.0% to -16.6%). CONCLUSIONS The reduction of SSBs in health-promoting settings such as recreation centres is a feasible, effective public health policy that is likely to be transferable to other high-income countries with similarly unhealthy beverage offerings. However, complementary strategies should be considered to encourage customers to switch to healthier alternatives, particularly when translating policies to organisations with less flexible income streams. © Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2020. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.CONTEXT Postoperative recovery rooms have existed since 1847, however, there is sparse literature investigating interventions undertaken in recovery, and their impact on patients after recovery room discharge. OBJECTIVE This review aimed to investigate the organisation of care delivery in postoperative recovery rooms; and its effect on patient outcomes; including mortality, morbidity, unplanned intensive care unit (ICU) admission and length of hospital stay. DATA SOURCES NCBI PubMed, EMBASE and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature. STUDY SELECTION Studies published since 1990, investigating health system initiatives undertaken in postoperative recovery rooms. One author screened titles and abstracts, with two authors completing full-text reviews to determine inclusion based on predetermined criteria. A total of 3288 unique studies were identified, with 14 selected for full-text reviews, and 8 included in the review. DATA EXTRACTION EndNote V.8 (Clarivate Analytics) was used to manage referciated with decreased length of stay and two found no association. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER This protocol is registered on the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) database, registration number CRD42018106093. © Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2020. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.Calcineurin B-like protein (CBL) and CBL interacting protein kinase (CIPK) mediated calcium signaling has been widely reported to function in plant development and various stress responses, particularly in ion homeostasis. Sugars are the most important primary metabolites and thus sugar homeostasis requires precise regulation. Here we describe a CBL2-CIPK6-Tonoplast-Localized Sugar Transporter 2 (TST2) molecular module in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) that regulates plant sugar homeostasis, in particular glucose homeostasis. GhCIPK6 is recruited to the tonoplast by GhCBL2 and interacts with the tonoplast-localized sugar transporter GhTST2. Overexpression of either GhCBL2, GhCIPK6, or GhTST2 was sufficient to promote sugar accumulation in transgenic cotton, whereas RNAi-mediated knock-down of GhCIPK6 expression or CRISPR-Cas9 mediated knock-out of GhTST2 resulted in significantly decreased glucose content. Moreover, mutation of GhCBL2 or GhTST2 in GhCIPK6-overexpressing cotton reinstated sugar contents comparable to wild-type plants. Heterologous expression of GhCIPK6 in Arabidopsis also promoted glucose accumulation, whereas mutation of AtTST1/2 in GhCIPK6-overexpressing Arabidopsis similarly reinstated wild-type sugar contents, thus indicating conservation of CBL2-CIPK6-TST2-mediated sugar homeostasis among different plant species. Our characterization of the molecular players behind plant sugar homeostasis may be exploited to improve sugar contents and abiotic stress resistance in plants. copyright, serif 2020 American Society of Plant Biologists. All rights reserved.The lignin biosynthetic pathway is highly conserved in angiosperms, yet pathway manipulations give rise to a variety of taxon-specific outcomes. Knockout of lignin-associated 4-coumarateCoA ligases (4CLs) in herbaceous species mainly reduces guaiacyl (G) lignin and enhances cell wall saccharification. Here we show that CRISPR-knockout of 4CL1 in poplar (Populus tremula x alba) preferentially reduced syringyl (S) lignin, with negligible effects on biomass recalcitrance. Concordant with reduced S-lignin was downregulation of ferulate 5-hydroxylases (F5Hs). Lignification was largely sustained by 4CL5, a low-affinity paralog of 4CL1 typically with only minor xylem expression or activity. PD0332991 Levels of caffeate, the preferred substrate of 4CL5, increased in line with significant upregulation of caffeoyl shikimate esterase1. Upregulation of caffeoyl-CoA O-methyltransferase1 and downregulation of F5Hs are consistent with preferential funneling of 4CL5 products toward G-lignin biosynthesis at the expense of S-lignin. Thus, transcriptional and metabolic adaptations to 4CL1-knockout appear to have enabled 4CL5 catalysis at a level sufficient to sustain lignification.

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